This invention relates to the field of medicine, and particularly to apparatus whereby medical personnel may collect and keep reliable records of the liquid output of a patient. The equipment is specially designed for monitoring the volumetric urine output of a patient at regularly hourly intervals, for a total period longer than the usual work shift of hospital personnel.
The importance of knowledge of the patient's renal output is well known in medicine. A knowledge of the volumes of urine excreted by a patient over particular periods of time is extremely helpful in the management of fluid imbalances or electrolyte abnormalities. In cases where the patient has been in shock and the renal function is questionable, as in severe burn cases, urine output measurement is very important. Also, in virtually any serious illness, injury or operational procedure where a reduction in blood volume is anticipated, accurate measurement of small urinary volume output is either mandatory or highly desirable.
Accurate urine measurement are an aid in recognizing the onset of impending post-surgical shock. For this reason, the urine volumes of many post-surgical patients are measured hourly, particularly those who have undergone cardiac, thoracic, neurological or genitourinary surgery.